Sarah Emma Edmonds was a Great Pretender

Sarah Emma Edmonds was a Great Pretender: The true story of a Civil War Spy by Carrie Jones, illustrations by Mark Oldroyd, Carolrhoda Books, 2011, ISBN 978-0-7613-5399-7
So, at one point in this book, "she was a woman (Sarah) pretending to be a man (Frank) pretending to be a woman (Bridget)." This is a remarkable story of a woman who spent most of her life "pretending" but never seemed to loose her sense of self. It's also the story of just one of many people who stepped up and did what had to be done (and more) in order to help their side prevail in the Civil War. As the book tells us, when Sarah was asked how she managed to do all the pretending, she said, "I am naturally fond of adventure, a little ambitious, and a good deal romantic--but patriotism was the true secret of my success." The author's note gives us a little more explanation and even praise for Sarah's life: "She stands as but one example among many of a woman who made a great contribution to the welfare of her fellow humans in spite of the prevailing sexism of her era."
Nice job, Sarah.

Fly, Cher Ami, Fly!

Fly, Cher Ami, Fly! The Pigeon Who Saved the Lost Battalion by Robert Burleigh, illustrated by Robert MacKenzie, Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2008, ISBN 978-0-8109-7097-7
From the book jacket: "Cher Ami was one of 600 carrier pigeons used by the American Army during WWI. This book tells the particular story of one of the most famous flights, when a heroic pigeon, against all odds, helped rescue a lost battalion of soldiers."
The true story takes us back to the days before cell phones and radar, to a time when man and nature were perhaps a little more in tune with each other.

Baseball: a look at history

Mudball by Matt Tavares, Candlewick Press, 2005, ISBN 0-7636-2387-3
PS: During a rainy Minneapolis Millers baseball game in 1903, Little Andy Oyler has the chance to become a hero by hitting the shortest and muddiest home run in history.
I really love this book, but it's a natural: I love baseball and I love historical fiction. The brown, gray, and black and white illustrations are perfect to convey the rainy, gloomy day on which this record-breaking home run takes place. Kids will enjoy the suspense created by the author (won't tell you why) and cheer with "Little" Andy Oyler in the end. Another great lesson about NOT judging something by just looking at it (you never know what's inside).

Use Mudball to introduce the history of baseball. You'll find all the information you need in:
Ballpark: the Story of America's Baseball Fields by Lynn Curlee, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2005, ISBN 0-689-86742-5
For the true baseball fan, this book presents historical baseball fields and facts in a picture book format making it good for older elementary students. Diagrams of some fields are included, as well as historical events which occurred on certain fields. Great players are mentioned, including Cy Young, Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, and Jackie Robinson. This will be a book that students will want to read over several days, exploring a portion each time.
Author Lynn Curlee, who won the Sibert Honor Award for Brooklyn Bridge, has penned other historical books: Liberty, Ships of the Air, Into the Ice: The Story of Arctic Explorations, Rushmore, The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, Capital, and Parthenon. Find the books at the publisher's website. See his work at Curlee Art.com.
Check out this list of Baseball Books at Embracing the Child.

Crow Call by Lois Lowry

Crow Call by Lois Lowry, illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline, Scholastic Press, 2009, ISBN 978-0-545-03035-9
This is the story of young Liz, her father, and their strained relationship. Dad has been away at WWII for longer than she can remember, and they begin their journey of reconnection through a hunting shirt, cherry pie, tender conversation, and the crow call. This allegorical story shows how, like the birds gathered above, the relationship between the girl and her father is graced with the chance to fly. (Note: above work is not mine, but I do not have a cite). This is a true story based on the author's life around 1945.
This story would fit in well with Rick Shelton's "make a story out of a single event." Take a moment (or short period of time) and draw it out, using details.
This book is mentioned in a blog called the Lesson Machine.
This is a true story based on the author's life around 1945. Reminds me of Rick Shelton's advice to take a single moment or event out of your life and make a story out of it. Draw it out with lots of details and vivid descriptions.

Let the Celebrations Begin by Margaret Wild and Julie Vivas

Let the Celebrations Begin by Margaret Wild and Julie Vivas, Orchard Books, 1991, ISBN 0-531-05937-5
Summary: A child, who remembers life at home before life in a concentration camp, makes toys with the women to give to the other children at the very special party they are going to have when the soldiers arrive to liberate the camp.
Tags: Concentration camps, Jews, WWII

Home on the Range by Deborah Hopkinson

Home on the Range: John A. Lomax and His Cowboy Songs by Deborah Hopkinson, illustrated by S.D. Schindler, GP Putnam's Sons, 2009.
More Western flavor from the author who gave us Stagecoach Sal. This book, however, is a true story about John A. Lomax, the boy who was "singing the sun awake in the morning and crooning the moon to sleep at night." Set on a farm "near the old Chisholm Trail", the story relays how farm workers and cattle drivers alike would create songs to pass the day and make the chores easier. John eventually wrote all these songs down and stored them in the bottom of an old trunk. While a student at the University of Texas, he showed the songs to a professor, who found no value in "these songs of plain, ordinary folk." However, after going back to school at Harvard University, he met a professor "who changed his life." Professor Barrett Wendell did something really creative: he had his students write about their home, and report it to the class. Risking ridicule, John wrote about the home and the cowboy songs that he loved. John asked for help from the folks back home, and the letters poured in! As John tells his story and sings his songs, the illustrator cleverly transports the class to the plains of Texas, complete with campfire. After his time at Harvard, John continued to collect and preserve these cowboy songs. This book reminds us of the importance of "our families, our homes, our work, and our troubles", and the songs that accompany us on the journey.
Visit the author's website.

Stagecoach Sal by Deborah Hopkinson

Stagecoach Sal: Inspired by a True Story by Deborah Hopkinson, pictures by Carson Ellis, Disney Hyperion Books, 2009
Old West charm characterizes this story of Sal, who loved to drive the stagecoach and sing for the passengers. Who would have thought that her ability to sing would help her outsmart and capture the famous 'Poetic Pete", the most polite bandit in all of California? She became known as "Singing Sal, the Stagecoach Gal". Based on the life of Delia Haskett Rawson (b. 1861), who was "possibly the first and only woman to carry the US mail by stagecoach." Poetic Pete is based on a real character as well: Black Bart.
The book's language and song verses are reminiscent of yesteryear, and help create a "picture" of this time period in America's history. The author gives a reference for the Kids' Pages of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences if you want to hear some of Sal's favorite folk songs.